I once worked for a man who sent emails at 2am.
Not occasionally. Religiously. You could set your watch by it, if you were the sort of person awake at 2am to check. His subject lines were always urgent. His tone was always "just checking in" whilst simultaneously making it abundantly clear he expected a response before sunrise.
The rest of the leadership team adored him. He was "committed." He was "driven." He was "always on." He got promoted three times in four years.
His team turnover was 67% annually.
Meanwhile, down the corridor sat another leader – let's call her Sarah. Sarah rarely spoke in strategy meetings unless she had something worth saying. Her emails arrived during business hours. Her team meetings had agendas and finished early. Boring, right?
Sarah's team delivered 40% above target three years running. Her people got promoted into senior roles across the company. When she eventually left, four of her direct reports followed her to her new company within six months.
The organisation had no idea what they'd lost until she was gone.
I spent eighteen months studying leadership behaviour in high-pressure environments. I was expecting to find that the most admired leaders were also the most effective. What I found instead kept me awake at night – and not in the 2am-email way.
The pattern was uncomfortable to acknowledge: the leaders everyone admired weren't the ones delivering sustainable results.
The loudest voices in strategy meetings rarely built the strongest teams. The executives sending updates at 11pm weren't the ones their reports trusted most. The leaders with the longest track records of "wins" had the highest team turnover.
Something fundamental was broken in how we identify high performance.
Two Types Emerged
After hundreds of observations, two distinct leadership archetypes became clear. I've labelled them Type A and Type B, though not in the personality-test sense. This is about what they optimise for.
Type A: Visibility-Driven
These leaders optimise for being seen as competent. Every action has an audience in mind. Their calendar is a performance piece – packed with high-profile meetings, strategic initiatives with impressive names, and face-time with executives. Recognition flows upward (they're brilliant at taking credit), whilst accountability flows downward (they're equally skilled at delegating blame).
Type B: Impact-Driven
These leaders optimise for team capability. Most of their best work happens in private – coaching conversations, removing blockers, creating space for others to shine. Their calendar protects focus time ruthlessly. Recognition flows downward (they celebrate their team's wins), whilst accountability flows upward (they take personal responsibility when things go wrong).
The irony? On paper, these behaviours look remarkably similar.
Both types work long hours. Both care about outcomes. Both want to succeed. You could observe them in a meeting and struggle to tell them apart.
But watch what happens when pressure hits.
The Pressure Test
Type A leaders get louder under stress. More emails. More meetings. More visibility of their involvement. They insert themselves into every crisis, ensuring everyone knows they're "handling it." Their Slack presence becomes omnipresent. Their calendar expands to consume every available moment – and they make sure you know about it.
Type B leaders get quieter. Fewer distractions for their team. More clarity on priorities. More space for their people to solve problems without unnecessary interference. They absorb pressure rather than amplifying it. They ask "what do you need from me?" rather than "let me show you what I'm doing."
The difference compounds over time.
Type A builds a reputation. Type B builds capability.
One creates dependency. The other creates resilience.
If you've ever wondered why some teams fall apart when their leader leaves whilst others barely skip a beat, now you know.
The Truth No HR Wants To Admit
Here's where it gets genuinely awkward: organisations reward Type A behaviour more consistently.
Being visible looks like leadership. Being effective requires looking closer.
Most promotion systems can't tell the difference. Annual reviews capture visibility more easily than impact. The executive team remembers who spoke up in that crisis meeting, not who quietly solved the underlying problem three months earlier.
This creates a perverse incentive structure where ambitious professionals learn to optimise for visibility rather than impact. They watch the Type A leaders climb the ladder and conclude – reasonably – that this is what success looks like.
And so the cycle perpetuates itself.
What You Can Do About It
Whether you're leading a team, aspiring to lead one, or simply trying to identify which type of leader you're currently working for, here's how to put this insight into action:
This Week:
Audit your own behaviour. When pressure hits, do you get louder or quieter? Do you absorb stress or transmit it? Be brutally honest with yourself.
Notice who in your organisation receives recognition versus who actually delivers results. Are they the same people?
Ask yourself: am I optimising for being seen as competent, or for actually building something sustainable?
This Month:
If you manage people, try redirecting recognition downward for thirty days. Credit your team publicly. Take accountability privately. Notice what changes.
Protect focus time – yours and your team's. Every meeting you decline is time someone can spend doing actual work.
Have a coaching conversation with a direct report where you listen more than you speak. Radical, I know.
This Quarter:
Identify one Type B leader in your organisation. Study them. What do they do differently? How do they navigate the visibility game whilst staying true to impact-driven principles?
Build a track record that speaks for itself. Results compound. Reputation without substance eventually collapses under scrutiny.
If you're working for a Type A leader, consider what that means for your development. Are you learning skills or learning to perform?
A Final Thought For The Year
I've been fortunate to work with extraordinary leaders throughout my career – across Microsoft, Xbox, Virgin, and beyond. The ones I learned the most from weren't always the most visible. They were the ones who made me better at what I did.
Type B leaders don't always get the recognition they deserve. That's partly because they're busy giving it away to others.
But the teams they build? The capabilities they create? The leaders they develop? That legacy outlasts any promotion cycle.
Which type of leader do you recognise the most?
And more importantly – which type are you becoming?
Thank You, And Happy Holidays 🎄
This is my final newsletter before Christmas and the New Year, so I wanted to take a moment to say something I don't say often enough: thank you.
Thank you for reading. Thank you for your comments, your replies, your feedback, and your questions throughout 2025. Thank you for sharing these newsletters with colleagues who might find them useful. Thank you for being part of this community.
Writing the Career Accelerator has been one of the most rewarding things I've done this year, and that's entirely because of you all. Your engagement makes this worthwhile. Your stories remind me why I started writing in the first place.
I'll be taking a break over the festive period. The next edition will land in your inbox on Sunday, 11th January 2026, when we'll kick off the new year with fresh insights and renewed energy.
Until then, I wish you and yours the very best for the holiday season and a prosperous, healthy, and fulfilling 2026.
Rest well. Recharge. Spend time with the people who matter.
Keep on rockin'!
Harvey
